Ranking the 10 Biggest MLB Stars from Every Decade of the Last Century
With Albert Pujols putting the finishing touches on one of the greatest careers in MLB history and making a spirited push toward 700 home runs, it's hard to not think about his place among the all-time greats.
It's not easy to compare players from different eras, but we can debate players among their generational peers.
That's what we set out to do here by naming the 10 best players from each decade of the past century. We excluded the 2020s since it's too soon to make definitive calls and cutting things off at 1920 essentially eliminated the dead-ball era from the conversation.
We whittled down the 10 best players of each decade by using a combination of production, peak production and importance to team success.
We'll kick things off with an honorable mention slide for the 2020s and pre-1920.
Let the debate begin!
Honorable Mentions: The 2020s and Pre-1920
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Top 10 of the 2020s...So Far
It's far too early to pick a top 10 for the 2020s, so let this serve as an honorable mention list of sorts to set the table for what's to come. There are still seven years left for these players to be shuffled and others to rise.
1. DH/SP Shohei Ohtani
2. RF Aaron Judge
3. 1B Paul Goldschmidt
4. 1B Freddie Freeman
5. RF Juan Soto
6. 3B Jose Ramirez
7. SP Jacob deGrom
8. SS Trea Turner
9. SP Corbin Burnes
10. RF Bryce Harper
Top 10 of Pre-1920
The 1920 season is often regarded as the beginning of the live-ball era, so we lumped the biggest stars from the dead-ball era into one group.
1. SP Walter Johnson
2. CF Ty Cobb
3. SS Honus Wagner
4. SP Christy Mathewson
5. SP Cy Young
6. CF Tris Speaker
7. 2B Nap Lajoie
8. RF/LF "Shoeless" Joe Jackson
9. 2B Eddie Collins
10. SP/RF "Smoky" Joe Wood
The 2010s
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Top 10 of the 2010s
1. CF Mike Trout
2. SP Clayton Kershaw
3. 1B Miguel Cabrera
4. SP Justin Verlander
5. SP Max Scherzer
6. 1B Joey Votto
7. C Buster Posey
8. 2B Jose Altuve
9. 3B Adrian Beltre
10. SP Corey Kluber
• Arguments can be made for shuffling the order, but the top six on this list were no-brainers. Those three hitters and three pitchers combined for eight MVP Awards and eight Cy Young Awards during the 2010s.
• Catcher Buster Posey won three World Series titles during his first five full years in the big leagues and also took home the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 2010 and the NL MVP Award in 2012. His .302 average ranked sixth among players with at least 5,000 plate appearances during the decade, and his 41.5 WAR led all catchers by a landslide.
• Two Cy Young Awards and five elite seasons were enough for Corey Kluber to sneak onto the list at No. 10. Others in consideration for that final spot were Andrew McCutchen, Evan Longoria, Josh Donaldson, Giancarlo Stanton, Mookie Betts, Chris Sale, Zack Greinke, Tim Lincecum and Madison Bumgarner.
The 2000s
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Top 10 of the 2000s
1. 1B Albert Pujols
2. 3B Alex Rodriguez
3. LF Barry Bonds
4. SP Randy Johnson
5. RF Ichiro Suzuki
6. SP Pedro Martinez
7. SS Derek Jeter
8. LF Manny Ramirez
9. SP Johan Santana
10. RP Mariano Rivera
• Alex Rodriguez (77.7) edged Albert Pujols (73.8) as the WAR leader of the 2000s. Each player won three MVP Awards, so it was extremely close for the top spot, and Rodriguez's use of PEDs and the fact that Pujols played one fewer season served as the tiebreakers. Speaking of PEDs, Barry Bonds had a .517 on-base percentage and 221 OPS+ in 4,072 plate appearances.
• Randy Johnson and Pedro Martinez had dominant runs that began in the 1990s and stretched through the mid-2000s, which was enough for them to earn the top spots among pitchers. The wildly underrated Johan Santana joined them thanks to his American League Cy Young Awards in 2004 and 2006.
• The toughest omissions from this list included Vladimir Guerrero, Todd Helton, Carlos Beltrán, Chipper Jones, Roy Halladay and Roy Oswalt.
The 1990s
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Top 10 of the 1990s
1. LF Barry Bonds
2. CF Ken Griffey Jr.
3. SP Greg Maddux
4. 1B Frank Thomas
5. 1B Mark McGwire
6. SP Roger Clemens
7. C Mike Piazza
8. 1B Jeff Bagwell
9. SP Randy Johnson
10. RF Tony Gwynn
• Ken Griffey Jr. may have been the face of baseball during the 1990s, but his 67.5 WAR for the decade was dwarfed by the 80.2 WAR that Barry Bonds produced with the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. Bonds also won three NL MVP Awards while racking up 361 home runs and 343 steals.
• At the peak of one of the biggest offensive explosions in the history of the sport, Greg Maddux logged a 2.54 ERA and 162 ERA+ in 2,394.2 innings during the '90s, winning NL Cy Young Awards in 1992, 1993, 1994 and 1995.
• One of the toughest omissions was Juan Gonzalez. He won AL MVP Awards in 1996 and 1998, and his 339 home runs were good for fifth-most during the decade. He was joined by Albert Belle, Sammy Sosa, Barry Larkin, Larry Walker, Kenny Lofton, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz, Mike Mussina, David Cone and Kevin Brown in contention for the No. 10 spot.
The 1980s
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Top 10 of the 1980s
1. 3B Mike Schmidt
2. LF Rickey Henderson
3. 3B Wade Boggs
4. SP Nolan Ryan
5. 3B George Brett
6. SS/CF Robin Yount
7. SS Cal Ripken Jr.
8. CF Dale Murphy
9. 1B Don Mattingly
10. SS Ozzie Smith
• Nolan Ryan is the only pitcher who earned a spot on the 1980s list, though there are plenty of others worth mentioning: Dave Stieb (48.1) was the runaway WAR leader, while Bert Blyleven, Dwight Gooden, Orel Hershiser, Jack Morris, Fernando Valenzuela and Roger Clemens also made the preliminary list.
• Rickey Henderson (71.0) was the decade leader in WAR, while Mike Schmidt was tops in home runs (313) and OPS+ (153) among players who appeared in at least 600 games. Third baseman Wade Boggs hit .352/.443/.480 and won five batting titles in six years.
• Schmidt (1980, 1981, 1986), Robin Yount (1982, 1989) and Dale Murphy (1982, 1983) each won multiple MVP Awards, and Murphy and Don Mattingly deserve to be enshrined in Cooperstown alongside the other eight players.
The 1970s
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Top 10 of the 1970s
1. SP Tom Seaver
2. 2B Joe Morgan
3. C Johnny Bench
4. SP Jim Palmer
5. 1B/LF Willie Stargell
6. RF Reggie Jackson
7. 2B/1B Rod Carew
8. SP Bert Blyleven
9. SP Gaylord Perry
10. SP Phil Niekro
• It's apples and oranges, but Tom Seaver (67.1) and Joe Morgan (67.0) posted nearly identical WARs during the 1970s. Morgan won a pair of NL MVPs at the height of the Big Red Machine, and Seaver won NL Cy Youngs in 1973 and 1975.
• This top 10 could have been made up entirely of pitchers. Bert Blyleven, Gaylord Perry and Phil Niekro edged Steve Carlton, Fergie Jenkins, Don Sutton, Vida Blue, Catfish Hunter and Nolan Ryan for the final three spots.
• Where is Pete Rose? The all-time hits leader ranked 12th in WAR for the decade, and his 128 OPS+ trailed those of all the position players who made the list by a decent margin. He hit .314 and won the NL MVP Award in 1973, but teammates Morgan and Johnny Bench were undoubtedly better.
The 1960s
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Top 10 of the 1960s
1. RF Henry Aaron
2. CF Willie Mays
3. SP Sandy Koufax
4. RF Frank Robinson
5. RF Roberto Clemente
6. SP Bob Gibson
7. 1B Harmon Killebrew
8. SP Juan Marichal
9. SP Don Drysdale
10. 1B Willie McCovey
• It was a coin toss between Henry Aaron (162 OPS+, 375 HR, 80.9 WAR) and Willie Mays (159 OPS+, 350 HR, 84.2 WAR) for the No. 1 spot on the 1960s list. There's no wrong answer between the two legendary sluggers, and they can be considered "1" and "1A" for the sake of this discussion.
• Right fielder Frank Robinson was the first player to win MVP honors in both leagues, taking home the hardware for the Cincinnati Reds in 1961 and Baltimore Orioles in 1966, when he won the AL Triple Crown. His 166 OPS+ for the decade was the best among players with at least 5,000 plate appearances.
• Mickey Mantle, Carl Yastrzemski, Brooks Robinson, Al Kaline and Ron Santo were among the more difficult omissions in a decade that was loaded with underrated Hall of Fame talent.
The 1950s
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Top 10 of the 1950s
1. CF Mickey Mantle
2. CF Willie Mays
3. 1B Stan Musial
4. CF Duke Snider
5. SP Warren Spahn
6. C Yogi Berra
7. 3B Eddie Mathews
8. C Roy Campanella
9. SP Robin Roberts
10. SS Ernie Banks
• The New York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers matched up in the World Series four times during the 1950s, so it's no surprise four players from those teams landed in the top 10. Catchers Roy Campanella and Yogi Berra each won three MVP Awards, while Mickey Mantle took home two.
• St. Louis Cardinals star Stan Musial was already 29 years old when the decade began, but that didn't stop him from hitting .330/.421/.568 for a 160 OPS+ in 6,274 plate appearances.
• A pair of NL MVP Awards was enough for Ernie Banks to edge Richie Ashburn for the No. 10 spot, and that hardware is even more impressive when considering he played for the non-contending Chicago Cubs.
The 1940s
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Top 10 of the 1940s
1. LF Ted Williams
2. RF Stan Musial
3. CF Joe DiMaggio
4. SP Hal Newhouser
5. SP Bob Feller
6. SS Lou Boudreau
7. 1B Johnny Mize
8. LF Ralph Kiner
9. 2B Joe Gordon
10. 2B Jackie Robinson
• Even though he spent the 1943, 1944 and 1945 seasons serving in the military, Ted Williams was still an easy choice for the No. 1 spot on the 1940s list. He won four batting titles, finished in the top three in AL MVP voting six times and led all players in WAR (65.0) and home runs (234) in 1,035 games.
• The significance of Jackie Robinson's breaking the MLB color barrier in 1947 and his immediate impact with the Dodgers made it impossible to leave him off this list. He hit .316/.398/.478 with 20.8 WAR in three MLB seasons and one with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues and won the NL Rookie of the Year Award in 1947 and NL MVP Award in 1949.
• Hall of Fame middle infielders Luke Appling, Pee Wee Reese, Phil Rizzuto and Bobby Doerr were among the most difficult snubs.
The 1930s
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Top 10 of the 1930s
1. C Josh Gibson
2. 1B Lou Gehrig
3. SP Satchel Paige
4. SP Lefty Grove
5. 1B Jimmie Foxx
6. RF Mel Ott
7. 2B Charlie Gehringer
8. SP Carl Hubbell
9. 1B Hank Greenberg
10. SP Dizzy Dean
• Catcher Josh Gibson is widely regarded as the greatest hitter in Negro Leagues history. The stats certainly back that up, as he batted .376/.454/.745 for a 214 OPS+ with 105 home runs and 429 RBI in 340 games during the 1930s. To better contextualize those numbers: He averaged 50 home runs and 204 RBI per 162 games.
• After playing in the shadow of Babe Ruth at the onset of his career, Lou Gehrig was the face of the Yankees in the 1930s. He hit .343/.453/.638 for a 181 OPS+ with 347 home runs and 74.1 WAR.
• Lefty Grove led everyone with 80.7 WAR, and that mark topped all pitchers by a staggering margin. Fellow Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell (56.2) was second. Grove went 199-76 with a 2.91 ERA and 162 ERA+ in 2,399 innings.
The 1920s
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Top 10 of the 1920s
1. RF/LF Babe Ruth
2. 2B Rogers Hornsby
3. CF Oscar Charleston
4. RF Harry Heilmann
5. SP Dazzy Vance
6. 2B Frankie Frisch
7. CF Tris Speaker
8. RF Sam Rice
9. SS Joe Sewell
10. SP Pete Alexander
• When Babe Ruth hit 54 home runs during the 1920 season, it was more than the entire rosters of 14 of the 15 other MLB teams. That completely changed the game, and the Sultan of Swat racked up an absurd 102.8 WAR with 467 home runs in 1,399 games in the 1920s.
• For all that is made of Ruth's dominance, Rogers Hornsby was not far behind him with 94.0 WAR. He hit .382 with a 188 OPS+ in 6,394 plate appearances, winning seven batting titles and hitting over .400 three times.
• With a .381/.467/.650 line and a 199 OPS+ in 2,998 plate appearances, center fielder Oscar Charleston was the biggest star in the Negro Leagues in the 1920s. He won three batting titles and posted an absurd .433/.512/.736 line over 339 plate appearances in 1921.
All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference.
